


Time Traveling Eren

by Avenger_lock



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Angst, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Romance, Slow Burn, Time Skips, Time Travel, Underground, hanges dumb experiments, i couldve made a better title im sorry, i live for the angst, it still takes place in canonverse tho, poor eren, younger Levi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-21
Updated: 2018-10-19
Packaged: 2019-06-13 22:15:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15374535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Avenger_lock/pseuds/Avenger_lock
Summary: Hange messes around with Eren once again. Eren hasn't been having the best sleep due to nightmares. Hanje takes it upon herself to slip something in Eren's breakfast thinking her random concoction would help him sleep. Because of her experiment, Eren's titan form training turns into a mess. Instead of turning into a titan, Eren time travels to the underground. Lost and confused, Eren wanders around and discovers the brutality of the underground and runs into a younger Levi. They become a team and are inseparable. What will happen with Levi and Eren once Eren returns to his time?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all! This is my first fanfiction in years! My writing may be a little rusty so please bare with me as I discover my writing ability once again! I hope you enjoy this story. I haven't seen many time traveling fics around. I'm a sucker for time travel and Ereri so I took it upon myself to write this! If you have any critiques with my writing please let me know. Please also leave Kudos and comments, they are so appreciated <3 
> 
> I honestly haven't read past 51 in the manga and I haven't read No Regrets. I also haven't watched AoT since season 2 last year. I've just always loved Ereri. So, with that being said, please excuse my random mix up in the canon. I don't remember everything, and I certainly don't know much about the Underground, but I did some research! 
> 
> I'm trying for an update a week. Hope you enjoy!

Eren woke up to the voice of Corporal Levi shouting at him. He was shocked out of a deep, dreamless sleep. It happened to be the first dreamless hour of sleep he’s had in many days. To say Eren was annoyed was an understatement. He was furious. He was so tired. His bones even felt exhausted. Going many nights of sleep without as much as 1 hour of sleep really took toll on his body.

“Wake up you shitty brat! Everyone is at breakfast and you’re being lazy!” Levi tch’ed under his breath as he saw Eren startle awake. The boy was obviously not getting enough sleep. He could tell from the deep circles under his eyes. He knew this had been going on for a while. Eren wasn’t taking the death of the squad well. It’s been 2 months since it happened and a week ago he started developing dark circles. He looked like a walking zombie often. His training was lacking. His passion was practically gone. But that’s what happens when the world they lived in was a shit hole. But Eren was so strong. He knew that this pot hole in Eren’s life would pass and he would go back to that passionate teenager he secretly appreciated.

As Levi’s footsteps faded as he walked down the hallway, Eren groaned and punched the bed. Levi was Eren’s corporal and he knew what would happen if he didn’t get up. Levi was a hard ass and he watched over Eren. He was Eren’s protector. He’s been training him to be better and learn how to control his titan form better. He still couldn’t master the art of pure control and often lost control around an hour after shifting. It was frustrating that he couldn’t be better. He tried so hard and got nowhere with his efforts. It often felt like he was just worthless. He was a decent soldier but that was about it. He wanted to please Levi. Making Levi happy, exterminating all the titans and being humanity’s last hope were what his life goals looked like right now.

Eren slowly slipped his blankets off him, the warmth leaving him immediately. The nightmares have been awful. He groaned as he donned his clothing. His energy was severely lacking. Sleep eluded him because of the nightmares. Death and gore played behind his eyelids every time he closed them. Clasping the belts on his body felt like hell. He was sweating from the exertion of pulling on everything. He finally pulled on his boots and ruffled his hair to straighten it up a bit. There would be no shower this morning. All well, running late did that.

Everyone was in the mess hall chattering and playing around. They were drinking their tea and eating what looked to be bread and eggs. Eren’s stomach rumbled as the smell of the eggs wafted around him. Eggs happened to be one of his favorite breakfast food. He was glad Levi woke him up when he did, or he would have missed out on breakfast! The thought alone made his sleepiness fall away a bit. He quickly plopped down in the middle of Armin and Mikasa. One of them prepared a plate for him and he couldn’t be more grateful for his friends.

“Morning! Wow, you look like shit! Are you ok?” Mikasa’s voice came from his right. She was concerned about Eren, as per usual. He was like a brother to her, and her his sister. His pallor had grown paler as the days went on and Mikasa was worried one of her best friends was getting sick.

“Don’t worry, just haven’t been getting some sleep lately. Nothing to worry about.” Eren let out a small laugh just to reassure her. He really wasn’t ok, but he didn’t want Mikasa to worry about him too much. She had enough to worry about outside of him.

“Yaeger stop being a liar you look like you’re dying. So unattractive.” Jean laughed loud and obnoxiously before taking a sip of his steaming hot tea. He proceeded to quickly spit it all over himself screaming “HOT! HOT!” Eren bent over the table and started laughing. Jean liked to pick on him and he liked to pick on Jean, too. It was like a friendly bullying type of thing. They used to genuinely hate each other but over time their relationship improved in to what it was today.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever horseface. We all know you just want me back to my perfect attractiveness, so you have more jerk off material.” Eren shot back. Sasha dropped her bread and howled. Everyone followed suit, the whole table was laughing. Jean didn’t look so happy about it and scowled. Mikasa lightly elbowed me and shook her head with a smile on her face. Eren just couldn’t keep his mouth shut.

“Because you happen to be so tired I’ll let you off with that one and go back to eating my breakfast because I’m fucking hungry!” Jean started messily shoveling his eggs in his mouth. Gross.

Eating cleaner was something Eren had picked up from the corporal. He hated to see him give Eren the looks of disdain when eating something or getting anything dirty. He wasn’t perfect about it, but he tried. He wasn’t exactly a neat freak like the short man was. He could appreciate cleanliness, though. Eren wiped his mouth and sipped at his tea while he listened to the lighthearted conversation at the table. He was just too tired to take part in any conversation. In fact, he soon found himself lowering his head to the table. The noise around him turned into background noise. So sleepy…

Eren woke to someone shaking him.

“Huh? Wha…?” was the only thing that escaped his mouth in his groggy state. He slowly lifted his head and looked around with bleary eyes. Everyone was cleaning up the mess hall. He wiped his eyes and looked to where Levi was across the room. Levi was looking at him with a bored expression on his face, the one he is well known for. He met his gray eyes and thought he could see slight concern in them but shook his head. He was just tired; the corporal wouldn’t show concern for Eren. That was a crazy thought.

Hange was next to Levi jumping up and down and talking extremely fast. She stopped for a second to meet Eren’s eyes and cocked her head to the side in – what looked to be – curiosity. Whatever Hange was curious about he didn’t want to know. That woman was crazy! She was way too happy to blurt out things she wanted to do to Eren. He wasn’t interested in becoming her lab rat, unless it was for a valid reason. Most of her reasons were not valid and made him a bit freaked out. She propped up her notepad and started scribbling something extremely quickly before turning back to Levi and talking again. He rolled his eyes and nodded in boredom at whatever she was saying. Hange was truly a one of a kind person with a one in a kind personality.

Man, he felt even more tired than he did before breakfast. How was that even possible? In fact, the room even felt a bit weird. Sort of blurry, but not in a dry eye sort of way. It sort of made him feel dizzy. He shook it off and stood up before turning to Mikasa, the person who shook him awake.

“Thanks for waking me up. I’m so embarrassed. I can’t believe I fell asleep so quickly in front of everyone!” Eren groaned and facepalmed. The corporal was probably judging him for falling asleep like that. He didn’t want him to think he was weak. He wasn’t, and he was all up for training with Levi in his titan form today. He was sure training would wake him up and he could shake this horrible feeling off him.

“No problem, Eren. You sure you should train today? I’ve never seen you pass out like that. You really need sleep.” Mikasa fiddled with her scarf before glancing toward the ground.

“I’m fine. I’m sure training will help me wake up a bit. Tonight, I promise to try and get better sleep, ok?” Eren lightly smiled at her. Mikasa wrapped her arms around Eren in a tight hug. She really hoped he was ok. Eren often didn’t confide in her much anymore. Not since Squad Levi got killed. She was really worried about him and his mental health. He was like a brother to her and she wanted to truly look after him. Him and Armin was what she lived for. They were her family and seeing Eren hurt was hurting her.

“If you ever need to talk please come talk to me.” Mikasa whispered in his shoulder. Eren returned the hug and ruffled her hair.

“You would be the first to know if I needed to talk about something.” Eren released her and looked to Armin.

“We’re watching you today with Levi and Hange. We also need to know how to work with your titan form. The whole team will be watching you so do your best!” Armin declared with a bright smile. Eren smiled back and nodded. He didn’t like the idea of his best friends being so close to his titan form but they had reasons to want to witness him like that. They had to work as a team, even when he was in titan form. Maybe that would give him more confidence in his titan form to be better. His friends and Levi were watching. He had to be better!

Eren joined up with the captain and they all got ready for his training. They got their gear on and went to the training grounds they specifically had to train Eren in his titan form.

Eren was feeling nervous about the whole training session. He felt this way a lot of the time when it was time to train. He never knew what was going to happen, it was always a mystery. He never had complete control in his titan form, so anything could happen. He was always frightened that he would unknowingly hurt one of his friends or kill someone. But those thoughts were quelled when Levi spoke up.

“Oi, calm down you look like you’re going to shit yourself. You know I won’t let you hurt anyone, Eren. I promised.” Levi was looking him in the eyes with sincerity. His words before these training sessions always put him at ease. Knowing that the captain was strong enough to protect everyone from his titan form was always enough to settle him. He trusted Levi with his life and he wouldn’t doubt him for a second.

Hange was watching Eren intently, notepad in hand. She was ready to record anything that would happen to prove useful and informational later. She met his eyes and let her mouth open before she closed it again. Should she let Eren or Levi know that she had added a concoction to his food this morning? It shouldn’t really affect his titan form or shifting abilities. It was something she threw together that might help him sleep that night. She knew that he was being plagued by nightmares. It was obvious to her, it was probably obvious to everyone if she was being honest. She was hoping her concoction would block the nightmares from his sleep.

But – she had to admit – she often messed up her potions and random things happened. It wasn’t an exact science! You always must expect side effects or opposite reactions! She decided it was probably a good idea to tell Levi, so she tapped his shoulder.

“What could you possibly need to tell me right now?” He growled out while glaring at her. She was unaffected by his glare. After years of knowing him it loses its effect. He was still scary, but not so much to her.

“I miiigggght have added something to Eren’s food this morning. Just a little something to help him sleep tonight. It shouldn’t affect him right now but you never know, haha. Just thought I’d let you know.” She smiled innocently at Levi and hoped he wouldn’t kick her. She was a scientist, this is what she did! Experimenting was her main reason for living! His glare got even darker and he went to kick her. She was expecting it and dodged it with ease.

“Shitty fucking glasses, why would you do that? You couldn’t wait for dinner to do that? You knew he had training and you still went ahead with it? Careless. If anything happens I swear I will just let Eren’s titan form kill you. In fact, I will help him kill you.” Levi ran his hand through his hair and sighed in calm anger. She could feel his anger simmering beneath. She nervously laughed and concluded that Levi was still scary.

“I’m not telling Eren. Him knowing you slipped him something could affect his shifting. Next time talk to me before doing anything, got it?” She knew she was getting off easy right now, so she nodded quickly. She took a step back and got ready for the training session. It was serious Hange time!

Eren hadn’t heard anything that was spoken between Hange and Levi but he guessed it wasn’t important. They didn’t make any move to tell him what the exchange was about. It was probably nothing.

He still wasn’t feeling right, though. Everything felt sort of far away. He felt like he was floating but he knew his feel were touching the ground at that moment. The feeling he had after getting shaken awake at breakfast was still with him and only getting more intense by the moment. He started sweating and the sun felt too bright to his eyes. Maybe he was getting sick? No sleep and sickness were possibly the reasons for feeling this way. He wiped the sweat from his eyes and focused on keeping a look of determination on his face. He may not be feeling well but that won’t stop him from training! He needed to get better!

“Ok, Eren! SHIFT!” Levi’s strong voice rang around the training grounds and everyone tensed up, readying themselves. Eren quickly lifted his hand to his mouth and bit down hard. He closed his eyes as he readied himself for the transformation. After a moment nothing happened so he opened his eyes. Everything was out of focus and wrong. It was dark, but the sun was there. There were buildings, but he could also see the training grounds. Hange came running over to him and he heard Levi from far away yelling at her to stay back.

“W-what the hell is going on? Hange? I can see buildings. It’s dark. What’s happening? Ahhh!” Eren was panicking. It seemed like there was a weird overlay to his vision. Was he experiencing hallucinations?

“Eren, stay calm. This is all Hange’s fault. She slipped you something.” Levi was walking over to him. Eren felt anger run through him. She was always experimenting without his consent!

“Sir, I’m scared. Please help me.” Eren’s breaths were coming fast and his body felt like it was being torn apart. What was happening? He closed his eyes when he felt the captain’s hands settle on his shoulders. It was pathetic of him to sound so scared in front of his captain, but he was passed humility.

“You’ll be fine. This might be some sort of side effect of Hange’s little experiment. You’ll be fine Er-.“ He looked up into Levi’s eyes. His eyes were a bit widened and his face was showing true concern for Eren. He looked troubled, which meant that Eren must be in a very precarious situation at that moment.

One second Levi was there touching him with emotion on his face, and then he was gone. The sunlight was gone, and all his team were gone to. He was no longer standing in a field of grass and dirt with the sun beating down on him. He was standing in a dark alley behind what looked to be a worn-down building. It was possibly abandoned. Eren bent over in panic, hands in his hair.

“What the hell is happening? Where am I?” He frighteningly whispered to himself.


	2. Chapter 2

Eren didn’t have any idea where he was. The alley he was in didn’t look safe, though. Maybe staying in a dark alley wasn’t such a great idea, especially when he was in a foreign place. So, dragging his hands out of his hair, he made his way out of the alley.

_One foot in front of the other. I’m sure this is just a hallucination from whatever Hange gave me. Calm down, you’re safe. Your whole team is probably just watching you stare into space or something._

Eren tried to rationalize what was happening to him at that moment. He was passing by people that looked extremely ill. He was certain that some of the people he was passing by were actually dead. Everyone was pale white and looked to be miserable. Every building had some lanterns lit on them, casting a glow in the darkness. Many windows were lit as well, people inside casting shadows on the drawn curtains.

The path he was following was cobblestone and very bumpy. He almost tripped multiple times. He was sure he looked ungraceful to everyone eyeing him up as he passed people. He looked to be in the bad side of town. There were many dark unlit alleys. He wasn’t sure he wanted to learn the dark alleys secrets. They probably held many scary things.

The people staring at him also unnerved him. Some people looked genuinely nice and caring, but most looked like they were ready to eat him up. It was a threatening atmosphere. It set him on edge, making him wish he had some sort of weapon on him. But, of course – if this was a hallucination – having a weapon on him would put his friends in danger. He could easily stab one of his friends if he couldn’t see them past this illusion.

Soon enough he reached a bigger, smoother road. It looked like this town’s main road. Many shops were lined up and down the road and there were carriages and people walking up and down the sidewalks. Some people were unloading crates of food into several shops. His stomach grumbled suddenly. He had eaten what seemed to be an hour ago. That delicious breakfast seemed so far away. He was sure he was also using a lot of energy at this moment, stuck in this delusion. Plus, he had attempted to turn into a titan and that took a lot out of him. His stomach growled even louder. Damn, he was really hungry. But he was too distracted to eat. He still didn’t know what to do and the adrenaline was still running through him.

There was also the problem with how long this thing was going to last? Was it going to end soon? Will it end in days? Weeks? Months? It was a mystery. This was just troubling him more.

He took a turn down a smaller street that was directed away from the main road. Besides, he had no money for food anyway. It will have to wait. He was sure his friends would find a way to fix this.

He sighed and decided not to waste too much energy walking around for no reason and took a seat down in front of one of the houses with no lights shining inside. He didn’t feel safe here but there were probably no safe spots in this town, anyway. From what he’s witnessed the whole place was a clusterfuck of doom. But he was Eren Yeager and he knew he’d be able to adequately protect himself if someone were to attack. He knew enough about hand to hand combat to beat someone’s ass. He wasn’t the best among his friends at hand to hand, but he knew he was good. He was shit compared to the Captain, though. He couldn’t defeat him in a match no matter how hard he tried.

Thinking turned into a sleepy yawn. He closed his eyes for a second and drifted off for a second before he heard a loud sound and an older man’s shout coming from the nearest alley. He jumped up and was instantly on high alert. Something was happening in that alley. He wasn’t so sure he wanted to get in the middle of it. But it could be an innocent person getting picked on. Or it could be 2 bad guys being assholes. It could be anything and he was being dumb by approaching the entrance. He stayed close to the building, slinking closer and closer to that very dimly lit alleyway entrance. Still unsure about what to do.

Right at that moment the decision was made for him. A loud scream pierced through his ears and had his eyes widening. It was definitely Levi’s scream. He wouldn’t mistake that man’s voice for anyone else’s. He sounded scared. The sound made his heart race in terror. That was pure terror in Levi’s voice, something he hadn’t heard from the Captain before. He didn’t show much emotion in general so something bad must have been happening.

Eren jumped away from the building and ran into the alleyway. The faint light in the alley was thankfully bright enough that he was able to see what was happening. A few feet away stood Levi. Right next to him was an older tall man. He was sneering at Levi in a very evil way. Levi had a knife in his hand and looked threatening.

“Hey, what the hell are you doing to the Captain!?”

Both men looked over to him in shock. They were clearly taken off guard by his appearance.

“Stay out of this. This kid owes me something and didn’t fucking deliver. He deserves a beating.” The older man laughed. He immediately stuck his hand into his jacket. The older man had taken out a gun with swiftness, pointed it directly at Levi. Before Eren knew it, he ran in front of Levi with speed he didn’t know he possessed. Shots rang out.

Eren looked down as he felt the bullets enter him. Sucking in a pained breath, Eren punched the man as hard as he could. The man fell back against the building, his head hitting brick. He slid down to the ground, unconscious.

“Fuck, this hurts. Agh. Fuckfuckfuck.” Eren dropped to the ground in pain. Levi was breathing in panicked breaths.

“You didn’t have to do that. I had this handled. Now you’re hurt and probably going to die.” Levi was on his knees in front of him, hands roaming above his abdomen like he was about to help him but didn’t know where to start.

“Captain, I’ll heal. It’s fine. You were in danger and as a member of your squad I had to protect you.”

“Stop calling me captain, you’re obviously confused. You risked your life for a look alike of your Captain. I’m Levi. Let’s get you inside my house. Maybe I can help staunch the bleeding and pull those bullets out.” Levi helped me stand and I leaned against his right side.

Eren was confused. This man was definitely Levi, his Captain. He looked the same and sounded the same. Maybe he sounded a bit off, younger perhaps? His clothes were also different. The same expression was on his face. That bored look. His hair was immaculate as always with that perfect side part. This was for sure Captain Levi. So why didn’t he know who Eren was? Eren’s head was starting to hurt. He couldn’t tell if it was from the blood loss or from the frustrated confusion he was currently experiencing.

Soon enough Eren was being practically dragged into a small shack a few blocks away from the alley he found Levi in.

“Shit, you’re going to get you blood everywhere and I just cleaned this place.” Levi stated without a care. Eren let out a breathy laugh and regretted it when his abdomen seized up in agony.

“AGGGHH!” Eren yelled in pain.

Levi set him down on the floor and left the room for a second. He came back with small tongs and rags. He kneeled next to Eren and looked up apologetically at him before starting the process of getting the bullets out of him.

It was torture. Eren’s voice was ragged by the time Levi got the last bullet out.

“How in the shit are you still conscious? You lost so much blood.” Levi was shaking his head looking stunned. He placed the rags around the wounds and stood up.

“Don’t worry. I won’t die. I have incredible healing abilities.“ Eren’s voice was low and shaky. He knew he would heal. This Levi didn’t know about his healing abilities, so it was probably wise for Eren to inform him before he creeped him out.  

“Ok, whatever you say. Just don’t die on my floor. You already dirtied it.” Levi started cleaning up the blood that was dragged in. He should have felt offended, but instead it felt comforting. Levi was always so truthful and blunt. Here and as his Captain.

“Where am I by the way? I sort of woke up in this place.”

“Are you serious? You don’t know where you are? The Underground. I’m surprised you didn’t know. You’re in a load of shit. This is an awful place.” Levi disposed of some dirtied rags. The floor looked close to sparkling clean again.

The Underground. He’s heard the Captain talk about his past in the Underground. How he had to steal and hurt people in order to live.

Fuck. It seemed like he had been transported into the past. And the only person he knew was a younger Levi who didn’t know who Eren was. He couldn’t be readier to be back with his friends above ground.

Steam started rising from his abdomen, signaling the healing process. He looked over to Levi who was now staring at the steam with a confused expression.

“I wasn’t lying when I said I had healing abilities.” Eren shrugged and closed his eyes. He was extremely tired and dizzy. The hardwood floor felt comfortable.

“That’s creepy but I’m just going to forget that there is fucking steam coming out of your body. Hey, what’s your name, brat?”

“Eren.”

He slowly fell asleep to a tune being hummed by Levi. He didn’t know if he was purposefully humming to soothe Eren or if it was just subconscious. It was extremely calming and before he knew it he was in a deep sleep.

Levi started humming a tune he made up during his many years alone. It calmed him down when he was hungry, in pain or panicking. He wanted to share his calming tune to Eren and help him get to sleep. It was the least he could do. He could tell the exact moment when Eren fell asleep. He looked so calm in his sleep. And Levi shyly admitted to himself that he was also handsome. _Really_ handsome.

Eren saved his life by taking those bullets for him. Levi knew he would probably be dead if he hadn’t. He owed Eren his life. It was a shame that Eren risked his life for someone who wasn’t his Captain. But he was grateful. And to think, he didn’t know he was in the Underground either. Poor guy. He came to the decision that he would let him stay here and help him get on his feet. Maybe they would make a good team. Someone with weird healing abilities sounded like the kind of person you kept around.

Yes, he would ask Eren if he wanted to be his wingman once he woke up from his sleep. For now, Levi sat on the couch and fell asleep watching over Eren’s steaming form.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! I was excited writing this chapter. I mean, this was the meeting between past smol Levi and Eren so why wouldn't I be excited writing this? Don't forget to leave Kudos and Comments <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I took down my original chapter 3 a few weeks ago and decided to take more time in between chapters to write. Some readers and myself felt the pace was too quick and OOC. I hope you forgive me for being a few weeks too late! Also, time skips will start after this chapter! I'm half way through the next chapter, the romance will happen soon! Slow burn is one of my favorite kinds of romance stories!

It was the first night in a while that Eren didn’t wake up constantly due to nightmares. He had a few but he could barely recall them. The good thing was that he didn’t wake up due to them.  He recalled waking up a few times in intense pain before passing out again. He vaguely remembered an annoyed Levi and maybe some other people patching up his wounds and shoving some sort of food and water down his throat at some point. He was very grateful for Levi’s presence. Even if he wasn’t Captain Levi. What he did eventually fully wake up to was a killer headache and a dry mouth. He looked down at his body to see his bare chest was almost completely healed. There was a little bit of redness surrounding knotted up scar tissue. Soon, even the scars will be gone, and he would be as good as new. No one would ever know he was shot in the first place.

He groaned at the dizziness that assaulted him when he moved his head to look to his side where the couch was located. There were 3 people sitting on the couch, 2 of them were asleep. One man with blonde hair was lightly snoring and leaning on a small female with 2 red ponytails. Levi was the one who was awake. He was currently sharpening a knife with concentrated precision. His gray eyes darted over and met Eren’s as he stopped what he was doing.

“You were out for 3 days, idiot. You’re lucky to be alive. You owe me shit stain. We had to use a lot of our food on you, too. You would have died without our care. I felt a bit of guilt for you saving my life and getting hurt. That’s it. Don’t think we are friends.”

Eren gulped and cringed at how dry his mouth was.

“Thanks. I owe you.” Although, he thought that him taking bullets for Levi as payment enough. But this was different Levi and he had to earn his trust.

“So, we currently have no food because we didn’t know we’d have another mouth to feed. That job I was trying to complete 3 days ago was supposed to be our form of food. We’re going to have to steal from a shipment of crates.” Levi smoothed out his hair and stood up.

“Isabel. Farlan. Get your butts up. Eren is up and we have to go steal some food.”

So, these people were Levi’s friends in the Underground. He had heard them mention in passing once or twice but didn’t know much about them. He didn’t know if they were alive or dead in the future or not. All he knew was that they weren’t in the Scouting Legion. Maybe they wanted to a normal life once they got out of the Underground? He wasn’t completely sure. It was weird to see Levi with friends, though. The man was usually so reserved, even around Erwin and Hange, who were the closest he could explain as friends.

“I’m soooo tired. Just 5 more minutes?” Isabel threw her arm over her eyes and grimaced.

“Get up. We all know this is time sensitive and we need food.”

Farlan got up with no problems at all and stretched while Isabel rubbed her eyes and yawned.

“Alright, Eren, this is what’s going to happen. I don’t trust you. You’re coming with us where I can watch you. You can choose to fight with us or just stand there, I don’t give a shit. But just let it be known, we’re watching you.”

“Big Bro, he saved your life! He can’t be that bad!”

“You trust too easily, Isabel.”

Eren watched the interaction with curiosity. At least they didn’t all totally not trust him. Maybe Isabel could make it easier for Levi to trust him. He needed a place to stay. It was obvious to Eren at this point that this wasn’t a hallucination. This was the past. There was no way he could just dream or hallucinate this all up with his own free mind. He wasn’t _that_ creative. But if this was the past and he could get hurt, it would be safer to find his way into this group and have people who could watch his back and help him find his way to survive in this underground city. He didn’t know how long he would be stuck here. It could be a few more hours, a few weeks, a few months, a few years. It was all a mystery to him. Whatever Hange had given him really fucked him up. This was a mess. He felt like he was violating Levi’s privacy. But he didn’t know what else to do at this point.

“Let Isabel do whatever she wants. You know this is the way she is, Levi.” Farlan crossed his arms over his chest and leaned on the counter in the very small kitchen.

“I’m trustworthy, I promise!” Eren smiled his brightest smile when all 3 turned to him.

“Ok, brat. Whatever you say. Don’t make me kill you, I put a lot of effort in saving you.” Levi walked to small closet and pulled out 3 3DM gear sets.

_How in the hell did he get ahold of those? Even down in the underground Levi must be dangerously good at kicking ass._

“You’ll be riding with me. Don’t squirm too much. I’m the best at the gear so don’t think I’ll even blink before throwing off you if you hinder me too much.” Eren nodded quickly and sighed. This was going to be difficult. This Levi really hated him. His cold gaze was enough to persuade him of that.

Everyone started donning the gear. It was weird to see a younger, less muscular version of the Captain pull on the gear. He looked almost identical to his times Levi. It made him a bit uncomfortable. But, if he was being honest with himself, the whole situation was odd and uncomfortable for him. He was about to just steal some food with Levi, who was his Superior. His Captain. His life was a mess. Hange brought this situation on him and it pained him that he didn’t know if he was mad or curious about what was happening.

He didn’t bother asking any questions about the gear. Maybe when he was confident enough that Levi had faith in him he would ask. Maybe even tell him he knew how to use the gear himself.

“How about you just trust me just enough to let us go through with this little food heist?” Eren was hoping that he could prove his trust that way. It also gave him a chance to get to know him better. He didn’t know much about the man in his time. He was always so guarded. Even here, about 10 years younger, he was still almost as guarded as he was in his time.

If he was being honest, he wasn’t quite sure why he would want to get to know the man better anyway. He was his Captain and it wasn’t like they could ever really be friends. He watched over Eren because he was a monster, not because he wanted to be his friend. In fact, Levi was the only reason that Eren was alive right now. If it wasn’t for the titan experiments and such, he would most likely be dead in a ditch somewhere.

“Tch. I’ll give you a _microscopic_ amount of trust. Don’t fuck it up. Now I’m going to get a shirt for you. I’m hungry and I know you are, too.” Levi walked out of the room and a moment later came back with a cream-colored shirt. Eren took it from him with thankfulness. His other shirt was ruined. After putting it on he realized it was a little bit tighter on him than it would have been on Levi. He smiled slightly at the fact that Levi actually let him borrow his shirt. The man was a clean freak, after all. He could tell even in this time he was just as much of a clean freak. The thought that Levi wasn’t that different comforted him a bit. He tucked the shirt in his pants and smoothed the shirt down, feeling the puckered scars on his stomach.

As if Levi read his thoughts he looked at him and opened his mouth.

“I saw your wounds. You weren’t joking, you heal pretty fast. You’re a strange person.”

Eren shrugged and blushed slightly. He was embarrassed. He really didn’t know how to explain the healing ability to someone who didn’t know he was a titan shifter.

“Yeah, I think I was experimented on as a child haha.” This was awkward.

“Seems plausible. Whatever it is it doesn’t seem dangerous. In fact, you could probably be bait with that easy healing you got there. If you get hurt, you just heal a few days later. No big deal.” Farlan piped up as he buckled the last buckle on his gear. It was more than dangerous, but they didn’t know that. He was also not too keen on being bait for anything. But if that gained their trust he would gladly do it.

“I still feel pain but if that will help you guys get food I’m ok with being the distraction.” Eren shakes his head. He could see why Levi was friends with this guy.

“You’re such a nice person!” Isabel smiled at him and he grinned back.

“Thanks, I try.”

“Ok, let’s get this over with everyone.” Levi walked over to him and handed him a knife with a small holster. “It’s sharp, don’t cut yourself with it, brat. You don’t look like someone who knows how to use a knife, but I feel safer if you have one with you just in case. Maybe you’ll be of use.” Eren gratefully took the knife and strapped it in his boot.

“I don’t know much about using a knife. Maybe if you let me stick around you can teach me?” He stated it as a hopeful question. It was true. He never really had a use for a knife. He knew how to operate the blade to the gear well enough, but not knives.

“If you prove yourself to be useful, sure.” Eren internally smiled. This Levi was so much easier to talk to and ask for help. He wondered if the Captain was like that normally but just guarded himself more heavily with his subordinates.

“Alright! I’m ready to do this thing! I’ll be the best damn distraction you’ll ever see! My stomach is trying to eat itself, ugh.” Eren’s stomach rumbled and a painful aching made him feel slightly sick.

“Let’s go.” He followed Levi out of his small shack and locked up. Farlan and Isabel followed closely behind Eren, most likely watching his every move to make sure he wasn’t going to betray them. He didn’t know what to expect out of this little mission. In any case, he trusted Levi even if he wasn’t Captain Levi at this moment.

Together they 3DMG’ed through the underground city heading for their destination, wherever that was. He felt a bit nervous. This was a whole different thing for him. He usually only strictly used the 3DMG for fighting titans. It was just odd to use it on something that wasn’t titan-centric. He wondered when the moment will come where he is back in his time. Would he tell anyone about this little adventure? This felt like something that was kept as a secret. He didn’t know if he wanted to tell his friends or Hange anything. She would go nuts over her new little discovery. He especially didn’t want Levi to know about this. It would be too awkward to talk to his superior about hanging around with his younger self.

Riding on Levi’s back was also a different experience. The man was so graceful with his moves. He wondered if he would ever be as good as Levi at the 3DM gear. Farlan and Isabel were more his experience level, maybe a bit more amateur than him. it was obvious to him that Levi had taught them how to use it though. They oozed grace as well.

“Ok, we’re almost there. We need to be fast. Kick some people, grab whatever you can and get the fuck out of there. If we get separated, we meet back at my house.” Levi looked back and nodded at Eren and he nodded back in affirmation.

“I’m dropping you off here. We’ll come around in about a minute. Just distract them. That is your goal. They are around the corner.”

“Understood, sir!”

“I’m not your Captain, Eren.” He swore he saw Levi roll his eyes.

“I know!” Eren let out a laugh and turned the corner with Levi.

Eren jumped off Levi, readying himself for what was about to happen. All 3 of them flew off, leaving him alone.

_OK, Eren, you can do this._

He rounded the corner and saw a wagon with 4 men around it. One man was unloading, and another was giving crates to who looked to be a shop owner. They didn’t look too dangerous, but he shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. The 2 other men were obviously there as guards. He walked toward them, pretending to be a poor homeless man.

“Sirs, can I please have some food? I’m so hungry. Please.” Eren knew the best way to distract them. That plan included pissing them off.

“Get outta here, kid. We have nothing for you here.” One of the guards answered him.

“Please. Just something. I’m starving. I haven’t eaten in days. Please.”

“No.” That sounded like a final answer, so he had to push more.

“Give me food! You fuckers are hoarding it all for yourselves! Take some pity on a starving man!” Eren can see all the men start to get annoyed.

“Get out of here or you’re getting beat up. We don’t cater to people who can’t afford food here.” The other guard growled at him as he tightened his fists beside him.

“PLEASE I NEED FOOD!” Eren yelled and all of the men, including the shop owner looked over to him. the 2 guards stalked toward him now.

“Please, please, please.”

He felt the punch to his face and it took everything in him not to flinch away and hit the guard beforehand. He was here as a distraction, he didn’t want to get severely hurt. He hit the ground hard and gasped at the pain. The guard had a good punch. The other guard dragged him off the ground. Face to face, Eren spat at him.

“Get out of here you nuisance!” Eren took a deep breath and kneed the guard in the balls. If they wanted a fight, they’d get one now. He just had to be careful not to provoke them _too_ much. Hopefully Levi would be here soon.

The fight started then. Kicks and punches were thrown. Eren felt blood running down his face and he felt the beginning of bruises on multiple parts of his body. All of the wagon men were looking at him and the spectacle he created. Good, they wouldn’t notice when they’d swoop down and steal some food.

Just on time, Levi, Farlan, and Isabel came from behind and silently took out a few of the crates out of the wagon. They opened them and started throwing some food into sacks. Good, the plan was working. He was proud to have been a good distraction. With that thought, one of the guards happened to look behind him and see the 3 in the wagon.

“Hey! They’re stealing some of the food! GET THEM!” Fuck.

Eren tried his hardest to get the guards to the ground, but they escaped him and ran toward them. They reached into their jackets and pulled guns out. Double fuck. They had guns, why hadn’t that occurred to him? Of course, these people would have guns. They didn’t have to get up close and personal in order to hurt and kill someone. Eren jumped on one of the guards, knife in hand. He felt bad killing the man, but it was necessary. They looked ready to kill them. With one guard down, there was the shop owner, 1 guard and the crate handler left. Levi, Farlan and Isabel looked to be in trouble. While Levi was deathly graceful, the other 2 weren’t as graceful and were being ganged up on by the shop owner and crate handler. The guard had Levi cornered.

Bloody knife in hand, Eren went to help Isabel and Farlan. He knew Levi could handle himself.

Shots were thrown by the crate handler. Thankfully they missed. Sneaking up, Eren jumped on the crate handler and took him down. Isabel and Farlan managed to take down the shop owner the next moment. A heavy thud sounded in Levi’s direction and the 2nd guard lay on the floor.

 Eren wiped off the blood and sweat from his eyes and helped them take some food. Once the sacks were full he got on to Levi’s back and the maneuvered back to the house. They made sure no one was following them and took a longer way back just to lose anyone who might have happened to follow them.

He couldn’t believe that had happened. Nausea settled in as the adrenaline started to wear off. He also felt gross from the crusted blood – mostly his blood – that was coating his face and hands. He didn’t like this place. It seemed like a hellhole. No, it _was_ a hellhole. This was monstrous. People were dying left and right in this city. People were starving. It was always dark and grim. He couldn’t believe that Levi lived here before he joined the Corps.

They finally reached the house and they all went in. Isabel locked the door behind them and they all set the sacks down on the floor. They looked really heavy.

“Man, that was a great steal!” Isabel took out a piece of bread and started eating it, crumbs falling to the floor. Levi eyed the crumbs on the floor and shook his head. He knew Levi was probably cringing inside.

A silence fell between them as food was passed around and quickly eaten. Farlan managed to steal some alcohol, stating it was for later before taking another bite of his food. As the minutes went on, Eren’s cuts and bruises were slowly steaming, healing already. When they were done eating, everyone took off their gear and shoved it back into the small closet.

Eren sat on the couch, wondering what would happen to him after this night. Were they going to kick him out? Would they trust him more? Would they let him stay now that he proved his worth?

After Levi was out of his gear, his questions were answered.

“You helped protect Isabel and Farlan back there. I owe you for their safety. I don’t completely trust you, but you can stay here as long as you continue proving your worth.” Eren smiled at him in thanks.

“Thank you, you won’t regret this.”

“I better not regret it.”

Levi took out a handkerchief. “Please clean yourself off a little bit. You have blood and sweat all over your face and hands. It’s disgusting.”

Eren graciously took the small cloth from him and wiped his face and hands off. He wasn’t 100 percent clean, but he felt better already. It didn’t seem like there were showers in this house. Maybe there weren’t showers anywhere in this city. He wondered if Levi felt gross all of that time with no showers or access to immediate buckets of water.

“Thanks. I feel much better. Sorry for dirtying it.”

Levi didn’t acknowledge the thanks and instead told him, “For now you will be sleeping with me in my bed. I am a light sleeper, so any movement will wake me up. I will be watching you, brat. Don’t pull anything dumb.”

 Eren was both stupefied by Levi letting him in the same bed he slept in. He actually blushed a bit and hid the slight reddening of his cheeks behind the handkerchief. It felt too personal to share the same sleeping quarters as Levi. Captain Levi would never let him sleep in the same bed, let alone the same room. He understood Levi’s thought process behind it, though. So, Eren nodded and let Levi lead him to the bedroom with a quick goodnight to Farlan and Isabel. The bed wasn’t very big, it looked to be a full size. He would be cautious not to touch the man at all and leave a large space between them.

He pulled off the slightly dirty shirt and laid down on the bed. It was even worse than the bed he had in his room at HQ. He hadn’t realized it was possible for a bed to be any worse than the one he slept on every night. Eren pulled the covers over him and closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep. Maybe he’d wake up back in his time tomorrow?

Levi stayed up for a bit longer and messed around in the kitchen. He was too tired to figure out what he was doing. Most likely cleaning up and putting away all the food. As he was dozing off he heard Levi walk into the room and slight shifting as Levi changed his clothes. The bed moved a bit as Levi laid down beside him.

“Don’t you dare cuddle me in your sleep.” Eren chuckled.

“I promise you I won’t.”

The answer seemed to please the man as there was no answer back. Both men fell asleep quickly, tired from the day’s work.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late chapter! Life got in the way and I started college. I was thinking on also joining in on Ereri Week so updates will be a bit less for a few weeks! Hope you enjoy this chapter! For a few chapters there will be time skips!

A month and a half went by fast, and Eren’s situation didn’t progress at all. He was still stuck In the Underground with Levi and his 2 friends Isabel and Farlan. They were all a nice trio, Isabel being his favorite. She reminded him a lot of Sasha minus the obsession with food. She was energetic and funny and sometimes overdramatic. It was refreshing and the opposite of Levi. Farlan was a nice guy who looked out for everyone. He was the comedic relief. He made stupid jokes, and everyone rolled their eyes at him. It was refreshing. Levi was the serious part of the group. He was the ‘dad’ for everyone. When they went out he made sure everyone brought what they needed. He made sure everyone was fine after a fight and he _always_ made sure everything was clean. He was typical Levi. Even now, he could see the makings of a Captain in him.

Him and Levi surprisingly became closer as the weeks went by since the time he helped them with the food heist. They shared peaceful moments of quiet with each other. He found out that he and Levi were the only people in the group that shared a love for tea. So, a nightly ritual began as either he or Levi made tea and they quietly sat down to drink it together. Small talk wasn’t either one’s thing. Sometimes Levi would clean the kitchen as he drank his tea, other times he would oil up and sharpen his knives and take care of the 3DM gear. Outside of staying at home and joking around, there wasn’t much to do in the city except fight and scavenge. Knowing he had Levi and his 2 friends were the only things that kept him sane if he was being honest with himself. If he was alone he wouldn’t know what to do. He owed Levi his life, just as much as Levi owed his life to him.

He still slept in Levi’s bed every night even though Levi, Farlan and Isabel trusted him with their lives. He helped them several times through the months with bad guys and getting food and water for themselves. He’s helped patch up small wounds and scrapes, too.  

Why Levi let him still sleep with him? He wasn’t so sure. it felt nice to sleep in a room with someone else, though. He had gotten used to sleeping with other people in his younger trainee days in the barracks. Sleeping alone once he joined the Corps was something he had never quite gotten used to. Sleeping in the same bed with the person who was his Captain wasn’t as awkward as he thought. They were completely platonic. Nothing ever happened. No weird advances or touches. He wasn’t quite sure why that made him slightly disappointed.

He just wanted to be close to Levi. It seemed that he needed more friends, someone who understood him. Farlan and Isabel touched him and gave him hugs all the time but didn’t really _get_ how Levi felt about things like cleaning and other such things. They usually took it as a joke and made him do all the cleaning by himself. Eren has yet to clean with him, Levi always told him he had standards that other people didn’t get. If he was to tell the truth to himself, he felt a little bit jealous. He never seen Levi be so open to anyone touching him. Their tea time felt like bonding, but he wanted the man to sometimes talk to him. He didn’t even know why he felt this way. It wasn’t like when he got back to his time Levi would be his friend.

Today, Levi was announcing a cleaning day. This typically meant that everyone sat on the couch while Levi dusted and cleaned every single surface that existed in the house. He had to admit to himself, watching him clean was very comforting. It reminded him that he at least knew Levi somewhat, even in this place.

So, Eren took a seat in between Farlan and Isabel and prepared himself to be sitting in that same position for the next few hours at least. Levi walked to the closet and took out a bunch of cleaning supplies and donned that white cloth around his face. He also took out another white cloth and held it out to Eren.

“Brat, today is your chance at showing me your worth more than just helping us secure food and fight. Isabel and Farlan are useless at cleaning. They half ass everything.”

Eren was happy. He beamed and practically jumped off the couch. He was the main cleaner and usually did a very good job at cleaning. Very often the rest of the squad would slack off and he often just took over their jobs for them. He would rather have a somewhat happy Levi than a super grumpy Levi.

Cleaning with Levi turned out to be fun. It was mostly silent, and they didn’t talk much but it was comforting. Just being in his presence was comforting. He didn’t know why he was so comfortable with him, but he wasn’t going to think too much about it. He was relieved that he could even feel comfortable when he was in a strange city, in the past with his Captain. Halfway through cleaning Levi started humming that tune he hummed to Eren once before. Eren smiled under his white cloth and started humming along in a more subdued tone after about 10 minutes.

“Who told you to hum along?” Eren laughed at Levi’s sarcasm and rolled his eyes as he swept away some non-existent dust off a counter top.

“Fine, I’ll stop then.” Eren went silent just to annoy Levi.

A few minutes after he had gone silent he heard “I was just joking, it’s fine.” Levi’s tone was soft and Eren felt a light blush cover his cheeks. He was glad the white cloth was covering his face. It was a tone he had never heard from the man before.

For the next hour they hummed together and cleaned every nook and cranny together.

Farlan and Isabel had fallen asleep on the couch about 30 minutes into the cleaning session. He didn’t blame them. He knew the topic of cleaning could be boring to some people. It must be especially boring when you’re watching other people do it in silence. They looked very peaceful together, slumped on each other and lightly snoring.

At one point when Eren was sweeping the floor he accidentally bumped into Levi. The contact felt so comforting and surprising. He let out a slight squeak and quickly moved away, blushing hard.

“I’m so sorry, excuse me.” Eren let out a nervous laugh and looked to the floor as he began sweeping again. He heard a light _tch_ come from Levi but nothing else was said.

 When they were done, both men took off the cloths and put away the cleaning supplies. After they put away all of the cleaning supplies Levi closed the door and turned to Eren.

“You do a good job with cleaning. Mind helping me from now on? You’re not bad company.” His gray eyes stared into his green-blue eyes. Eren’s breath was lost to him for a second before he smiled brightly.

“I will help you whenever you need me to!” Levi seemed pleased with the answer and let out a light ‘hmm’.

Levi took a seat at one of the kitchen chairs. “Mind making some tea?”

Eren nodded and took out the small kettle. It was dingy looking, but it was clean, and it did the job. They sat in silence, listening to Isabel and Farlan lightly snoring on the couch a few feet away. When the kettle started whistling Eren steeped some tea. Levi was really picky when it came to steep times. He’d learned that the first few times he made tea for him. Eren made sure to quickly learn the best way to make tea by observing Levi when he made it for them.

Once it was done Eren sat down on the chair next to Levi’s and took a small sip of tea. It was so good. Levi took a sip of his with the weird way he held the cup. Eren had tried to sip tea like that once. Needless to say, hot tea ended up all over the front of his shirt that day.

He grinned at Levi when he saw the look of approval on Levi’s face. His tea for the last 17 days has been getting better and better every time he made it. Levi rolled his eyes and took another sip of tea. When they were both done Eren cleaned the tea cups and kettle. Nothing stayed dirty around here. Especially kitchenware.

“Wake up Isabel and Farlan. That can’t be comfortable. Thank you for the tea. I’m going to bed.” Levi nodded at him and walked into the bedroom.

Eren walked over to the couch and shook their shoulders. “C’mon guys, get into your beds or you’ll regret it in the morning.”

Both groaned but opened their eyes. They sleepily got off the couch and tripped over their selves while dragging their feet into their shared room. The door closed behind them and silence reigned over the living room. Eren walked to the bedroom he shared with Levi and got ready for bed.

Seeing Levi snuggled under the covers made his heart race a bit. He slipped off his shirt and joined him in bed, making sure to leave room in between them. This felt so normal. Every day he feels like this new life of his grows standard. It scares him because once he disappears from this place he will never meet this Levi again. He sighs and pulls the covers up closer to his face.

“You ok?” Eren was startled. Most of the time they did not talk while in bed.

“Yea, just a little stressed. Good night, Levi.”

“Good night, Eren.”

With that, Eren fell into a – thankfully – dreamless sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> College is still kicking my butt. Midterms are coming up. Ereri canonverse week is also coming up and I have nothing written. I'm updating now because I finally got around to finishing this chapter. I hadn't been able to write and revise as much as I thought I would this past month. The study situation this semester is heavy for me. I'm sorry, but updates won't be as consistent as I want them too :( I hope this bigger sized chapter makes up for my long absence!

~2 more months later

Levi, Farlan and Isabel went to do something on their own. They didn’t tell him what they were doing out for most of the day. He suspected they did a lot of stuff behind his back, despite being with them for over 3 months. They often went out for a day and showed up super late looking a bit beat up and dirty. He didn’t question them because it was obvious they didn’t trust him enough with whatever their secret was.

So, there he sat on the couch in boredom. He had gotten into the habit of sketching some things on a pretty beat up notepad they had found on one of their raids in the last few weeks. He wasn’t aware of his secret art talent until he started sketching over the last few weeks. He often drew Levi and Mikasa and Armin. He also admits to doodling Erwin with really large, overdrawn eyebrows and Jean with a horse face. They weren’t perfect drawings, but they were the beginnings of some good art. He’d be embarrassed if anyone in this time or in his time were to take a peek at the drawings. They felt intimate, especially the ones of Levi. They were often sketches of him when he let his guard down around Eren.

Most of his Levi sketches were from when he sketched Levi during their daily tea time. Levi always looked lost in thought and serene while he sipped his tea. It was pleasant drawing Levi in times like that. He looked so comfortable. He knew drinking tea was his way of de-stressing. He had the world on his shoulders, even in this time. It was sad to him that Levi never got a proper break. Levi’s life was never stress free. He didn’t know much of his life at all, but his childhood must have been worse. Levi was 18 in this time. In his time Levi was probably significantly older, late 20s or early 30s, he couldn’t quite remember ever asking his Captain for his age. He is only experiencing a glimpse in his life right now. In his time, he was guarded and withdrawn.

Eren sighed and looked at the sketch he had finished. It was him, Levi, Isabel and Farlan all squished on the 3-person couch. He recalled a night where they had done this exact thing. Poor Levi looked so annoyed when both Isabel and Farlan had suddenly dive bombed onto the couch, squishing Levi up to Eren’s side. He had looked so grumpy at the whole thing. They all laughed, and Levi shook his head and elbowed the closest two people to him. Those two people happened to be Eren and Farlan. Levi’s elbowing had actually left a bruise on both of them. He noted to himself that night to never let Levi elbow him ever again because that shit _hurt._

There was a knock on the door at that moment. He froze. None of the others knocked like that. If they ever had to knock they all had agreed on a special knock. He quietly got up and grasped the knife that was sitting on the table next to the couch. He had every right to suspect that it could be a bad guy. He was in the underground, a place known for its violence and ruthlessness.

He tip-toed to the door and made sure he would be able to attack someone in a split second.

He leaned up to the door, “Who is it and what do you want?”

“YOUR BLOOD!” Came from the other side of the door. So, an angry person was on the other side of that door. Possibly several angry people. The door was swiftly kicked in. Eren leapt into motion. Once again, being top in his class in hand to hand combat, coupled with Levi’s weekly lessons on knife fighting made him a deadly opponent.

Two _very_ large men tackled him. He could tell it was a poorly executed tackle, though. There was one bald man and one with very short hair. He easily maneuvered out of their way and was able to step outside of the house. Fighting in such an enclosed space was a bad idea. They could easily overwhelm him in size and strength. They followed him outside and they fought. It was hard evading two big people. But he was swift and ducked under their arms many times. Unfortunately, he wasn’t swift enough when the bald man kicked him hard enough to fall to the ground.

“Shit!” Eren cursed as the short haired man kicked him in the head. Spots flew across his vision, but he was able to maintain consciousness. He considered going titan at that moment but figured it would have been a bad idea. He wasn’t going to go down like this. He managed to stab the bald man’s calf and used the momentary distraction to grab on to the other man’s foot and pull as hard as he possibly could. His plan worked out as the man fell to the floor. Eren hastily got up and sliced the knife across the bald man’s neck. He fell to the floor screaming as blood gushed everywhere. He felt nauseous looking at it. The other man on the ground had gotten up and tried to get at him with a knife. He was lucky both men had been cocky enough to not bring out the knives earlier or he would have been a goner.

They both fought for what seemed like forever. Eren was bleeding from wounds he sustained from the other man’s knife. Eventually he was able to get an opening and quickly stabbed the man in the chest. Breathing heavily, he turned and tripped into the house. He wondered what they could have been angry at him about. He couldn’t recall their faces at all. Maybe they had been after Levi, Farlan or Isabel? He looked at the two men on the floor. They were undoubtedly dead. Eren closed the door and got to fixing the locks that had been broken. That was the most important thing he had to do at that moment. Blood was still oozing from the knife wounds, but he knew they would heal in a day or two. Those could wait to be bandaged. Living in a house with no locks in the underground was an awful decision.

He had just finished fixing up the locks when the door opened, hitting him in the face and making him fall backwards.

“Ouch, shit.” He wasn’t exactly ready to fight another person, but he got up and readied himself. But his anger quickly turned into panic when he saw what was happening. Farlan and Isabel had blood all over them. He quickly scanned them and saw they were both holding up an unconscious Levi. His heart sped up and he forgot everything. Levi was hurt. It could be potentially life threatening. He closed the door behind them as they set him on the floor. He could see they were both crying, their tears leaving tracks through the dirt on their cheeks.

“Move!” Eren leaned down and looked at the blood that was all over Levi. _Nonono this couldn’t be happening. Levi isn’t supposed to die. Please._

“What happened?” Eren looked to Farlan and Isabel. They were still crying.

“He was stabbed! They came up behind us and we fought but they still got him. We were able to maneuver away but Levi won’t stop bleeding! I tried to tie his arm up, but I don’t think it worked!” Farlan ran his bloody hands through his hair trying to keep his panic under control. He needed to be strong for his friends. He needed to make sure Levi would be okay.

“Ok, I had a father who was a doctor. I grew up and saw him perform all kinds of procedures. Get me all the medical supplies we have. I’m going to look at Levi’s arm.” Eren bent down in front of Levi and started inspecting the arm as Isabel and Farlan rushed to the closet.

“you’re going to be ok.” Eren whispered. He had to be ok. Levi’s arm had a deep wound on it, just barely nicking a major artery that would have potentially killed him. He just had to clean the wound and stitch it up. The bleeding was his main concern. He was confident Levi would be okay once he patched him up.

Farlan set down the products and Isabel looked to him and said, “Ok, we both have everything we own right here. We’re both entrusting you with Levi’s life right now. Don’t fuck it up.”

Eren nodded at them both and got to work.

Afterwards, he set a patched-up Levi down on the bed. He was pale and still unconscious and would need to be careful with his arm for a while, so he didn’t cause more injury and rip the stitches. He was sure Levi would still try and push himself too far. Typical Levi. Eren sighed and wiped Levi’s hair off his forehead. He looked so peaceful when he wasn’t awake. All those frown lines smoothed out. Eren’s hand traveled the rest of his head in a small ruffle. Levi would have slapped him had he been awake. But for Eren, Levi’s hair was so soft. How did someone with such a hard personality possess such soft hair?

Eren pulled his hand back like it had been burnt. Why was he thinking these things? These aren’t things you thought about your friends. Armin had nice hair and he’s only ever made fun of him for his haircut. He’s never felt this way about Levi before. It was a strange feeling that made its home in his heart and lungs. Took his breath away. He sighed once again and pulled the blanket over Levi. He hoped for him to wake up soon. He was still so worried about the small man.

He sat down on his side of the bed. When did he start having a side of the bed in the first place? It was strange enough to be spending his every night in Levi’s bed, but it was even stranger to automatically refer to it as his half of the bed. His Captain would never approve of the situation that was happening. He was getting too close and he couldn’t stop it.

He walked to the living room to grab his notepad and pencil and walked back into the bedroom. All this stress gave him an itching to draw something. The adrenaline was still fresh in his veins and it needed to be used for _something._

He sat down on his side of the bed, being careful not to jostle Levi. He stared at the blank page and started sketching. It once again turned out to be him. That perfect undercut and those pristine clothes. How did he always manage to keep his white clothing unblemished? It was ridiculous to Eren, who often dirtied his clothing a few hours after waking up. The Underground was a dirty place. It was no wonder Levi had such a hatred for dirt.

The finished sketch was of Levi, in the position he was in now. He was sleeping peacefully and looked like nothing was out to get him. So unlike reality. He was so lost in thought he didn’t realize the Levi had finally woken up until a hand touched his arm. He was instantly alert and looked over to see Levi’s gray eyes on him.

“What happened? My arm fucking hurts.” Eren could see the pain in his face.

“According to Isabel and Farlan, you got stabbed. I patched you up. You would have bled out if me and your friends weren’t there to help you.” Levi sighed and closed his eyes.

“Shit.”

“Yeah, you’re going to have to stay here for a bit. You need bedrest. If you push yourself, you can hurt yourself more and rip the stitches. We also can’t risk infection. There isn’t much in the ways of medicine down here, is there?”

“Nope. It’s expensive and hard to come by.” Eren noticed the lack of questioning over the fact he’d have to be on bedrest. He knew Levi was just ignoring it. it was just like him. Captain Levi in his time also chooses to ignore medical advice. His leg was injured in the battle against the female titan and he chooses to walk on his injured leg despite being in pain and making the injury worse and slower to heal. He was extremely stubborn.

They sat in silence for a while until he heard Levi take in a heavier breath before speaking.

“I appreciate your help in patching me up. I don’t know what would have happened if you or the other two weren’t there. I probably would have died. Just thinking about leaving you three to fend for yourself makes me upset.” Levi was looking away from him like he was embarrassed. This was the most loving emotion he’s ever seen come from Levi and it caught him off guard. His heart picked up speed at his admission. He cared for Eren. He saw him equal to his two other friends who had been with him longer than Eren had.

“You’re my friend. To be honest, I was panicking when they brought you through the door. I contained it enough and made sure you were okay. I’ve seen too many people I loved die in front of me.” His eyes teared up as he recalled the deaths of so many people he respected and loved.

“Don’t cry on me, brat. I’ll pull through. I’ll have a wicked scar, but I have so many scars already it won’t really matter.” Eren took a deep breath and nodded, ignoring the twinge in his chest from what Levi said at that moment. It pained him to hear how he suffered. Everyone has scars but the man laying before him was only 18 and had been through hell already. But he was also just as young and has gone through so much as well. The world was a cruel place. He wiped away the few tears that escaped his eyes and gained his composure.

“I’m going to let you sleep. I’ll join you later on, I’m going to see how your friends are doing.” He got up and walked to the door when Levi spoke up.

“They are your friends, too.” Eren felt touched by the comment and turned around to smile brightly at Levi.

“That means a lot!” He heard the eyeroll coming from the other man.

“Tch, don’t blind me with your smile. According to you, I need to heal, and your smile will only burn me.” Eren laughed and shook his head.

“Have sweet dreams, shorty.” He walked right out of the bedroom right on time to avoid Levi’s infamous glares. Those glares could bring a man to his knees. Over the years of being on the other side of those glares, he was mostly immune. They were still scary, though.

There were still a few things about this whole mess that piqued Eren’s curiosity. Why were they all out together without him? What caused Levi to get so injured? Why were those men out to kill? These were questions he hoped Isabel and Farlan would answer for him.

The two in question were both on the couch looking worn out, the blood had been cleaned off both of them.

“We know you have questions. We saw those 2 dead men outside earlier. We’re glad you weren’t hurt.”

“yeah, they broke the door, but I managed to fix it before you came in with Levi. They were annoying to take down. But enough of that, what the hell were you doing that you managed to keep a secret? Levi was hurt because of it and I think at this point I should know.” Eren crossed his hands over his chest and leaned on the counter in the kitchen.

“How’s Levi? We wanted to come in, but we wanted to clean up and make sure he got enough rest.” Isabel played with one of her ponytails. She looked really sad.

“He’ll be fine. He was unconscious for an hour, but he woke up. He’s going back to sleep right now. He’s going to need a lot of bedrest.” They both nodded in affirmation.

“Ok, now that we all know Levi is ok, we’ll tell you what the 3 of us do when you’re not with us.”

 Eren readied himself for the information he was impatiently waiting to hear.


End file.
